Fox News has FINALLY gone too far! Smartmatic (the electronic voting systems company) has filed a defamation lawsuit against the conservative “news” network to the tune of $2.7 BILLION dollars!!
Current Events
In order to soothe the delusional rants of one Donald John Trump, Fox News spent weeks of post-election news coverage regurgitating the Big Trump Lie that the election was stolen and that voting machine companies such as Smartmatic, Dominion, and others were responsible for the fraud. Although Fox is notorious for fabricating fake news claims as red meat for their rabid conservative base, they’ve never been formally called on their lies — until now.
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The lawsuit was filed in New York State Supreme Court against Fox News and included anchors Maria Bartiromo, Lou Dobbs, and Jeanine Pirro. Also named in the suit were former Trump attorney’s Rudy Giuliani and Sidney Powell.
According to the 276-page complaint, Smartmatic charged that Giuliani and Powell “created a story about Smartmatic” and that “Fox joined the conspiracy to defame and disparage Smartmatic and its election technology and software.”
Here’s why this is a huge problem for Fox.
If Fox News coverage were branded as an “entertainment” show (such as “The Daily Show” and their admittedly “fake” news on Comedy Central), it could get away with saying almost anything under the guise of being comedic. However, they have chosen to brand as a legitimate news source, which subjects them to certain standards of truth they have refused to follow.
Their relentless claims over many months that Smartmatic voting machines created a fraudulent election result are, in fact, libelous. Defaming a company — particularly when the claims are proven to be outright lies (and on videotape) — has historically never worked in favor of the defamer. Or, in other words, if the Smartmatic lawsuit is successful (as expected it will be), a $2.7 billion dollar judgment against Fox News could theoretically bankrupt the network and force it off the air.
“When you are making statements that are knowingly false, and you make them with malice, and you actually tarnish reputations and it has a financial consequence — that’s why you have defamation lawsuits in the first place,” said CNN senior legal analyst Laura Coates.
“Libel suits against media organizations are typically filed on a slippery slope. Journalists have good reason to be concerned about these types of cases. And nuisance lawsuits against newsrooms are a real problem. But I think it’s safe to say that Smartmatic’s action against Fox is not a nuisance suit, and it has little to do with news. It’s going to be hard for Fox to wrap its hosts in a press freedom flag. This case is about entertainers who gave fuel to lies in a desperate bid to keep Trump in power,” added CNN’s Brian Stelter.
In an effort to save the network from extinction and immediately deploy the emergency brake to their on-air hosts who present a regular diet of deceit and lies, Fox News abruptly canceled “Lou Dobbs Tonight” — its highest-rated show and biggest fabricator of Trump/MAGA lies.
“Lou Dobbs Tonight is off the air, effective immediately,” a Fox spokesperson confirmed on Friday. They added that an interim show will take Dobbs’ place at 5 and 7 pm Eastern beginning Monday.
Removing Dobbs from his show on Fox was the equivalent of firing him, since it would be nonsensical to shift him to some other show and provide a platform to do more damage to the network. In fact, The Los Angeles Times said that although Dobbs remains under contract at Fox News, “he will in all likelihood not appear on the company’s networks again.”
Fox News was previously sued for promoting the belief that COVID-19 a hoax.
So, good for Smartmatic for refusing to allow Trump/MAGA/QAnon conspiracy lies peddled by Fox News to ruin their reputation and their business model.
As for Fox, an old phrase probably says it best:
“Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.”
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If Fox News coverage were branded as an “entertainment” show (such as “The Daily Show” and their admittedly “fake” news on Comedy Central), it could get away with saying almost anything under the guise of being comedic. However, they have chosen to brand as a legitimate news source, which subjects them to certain standards of truth they have refused to follow. […]- DJ
Ever. (at any time)
DJ does a good job of laying it all out there, point by point, of just why this lawsuit is indeed a “huge problem” for Faux News. Frankly, I also think Lou may be the First of several sacrificial synchphants that Faux will eventually get rid of. But we shall see.
Lou Dobbs was the top-rated show of the Faux Business channel -a channel with LOW viewership. The guy is toxic. Advertisers want nothing to do with him. Faux made no money off of his show. I agree with people who suggest that Faux was looking for the opportune time to get rid of Lou anyway. This lawsuit provided that.
So the Frankenstein monster that Faux News played a huge role in helping to create is now threating to eat them and the Republican party alive.
We know that despite branding itself as a “News Network,” Faux was never that. It is today what it was always actually meant to be. A right-wing Neo-Confederate propaganda network created for the purpose of appealing to mostly “poorly educated” blue-collar, white nationalists, white supremacists, gun-nuts an other assorted right-wing extremists in order to garner votes for the Republican party.
Basically, a cable version of right-wing talk-radio, feeding red meat to haters, racists, nutjobs and know-nothings.
But if this lawsuit actually goes to trial gonna be interesting to see/hear just how Faux describes itself in a Court of Law. I won’t be a bit surprised if Faux tries to settle this out of court.
NPR:
On Fox News, they talk a lot about so-called cancel culture – when someone is ostracized for a transgression. Well, now it is one of the – former President Trump’s greatest boosters who has gotten canceled from his Fox Business Network show. Very little explanation was given, but it happened just a day after a voting tech company sued Fox, Lou Dobbs and two other Fox News stars for $2.7 billion.
All those lies have finally caught up to Fox. I bet more of those hosts get kicked out just to protect Fox from more legal trouble. I cannot wait to see how all this turns out.
(just a little side, but important, news)……..
Alabama US Sen. Shelby announces he won’t seek a 7th term
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (AP) — U.S. Sen. Richard C. Shelby of Alabama, the Senate’s fourth most senior member, announced Monday that he will not seek a seventh term in office in 2022.
A titan of Alabama politics, the 86-year-old politician has spent 42 years in Washington, serving first in the House and then the Senate. His stepping down will leave a power void for the region and will set off a free-for-all primary.
“For everything, there is a season,” Shelby said. “I am grateful to the people of Alabama who have put their trust in me for more than forty years. I have been fortunate to serve in the U.S. Senate longer than any other Alabamian.” […] – US News, Feb. 8, 2021
(and there’s this important news)…………
Rep. Ron Wright has died from Covid-19, his office announces
WASHINGTON — Rep. Ron Wright, R-Texas, died Sunday from Covid-19, his office said Monday.
“Congressman Ron Wright passed away peacefully at the age of 67,” his office said in a statement Monday. It added, “For the previous two weeks, Ron and [his wife] Susan had been admitted to Baylor Hospital in Dallas after contracting COVID-19.”.
Wright, who was re-elected to a second term in November, is the first sitting member of Congress to die from the disease caused by the coronavirus. His death comes a little more than two weeks after he tested positive for Covid-19, on Jan. 21. At the time, he said in a statement that he had been “experiencing minor symptoms, but overall, I feel okay and will continue working for the people of the 6th District from home this week.” [..] – MSN News, Feb. 8, 2021